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THE GOG OF EZEKIEL IS THE ANTICHRIST OF REVELATION QUESTION? A question was recently presented on James Taylor’s site, terse, it just asked who are the Gog and Magog of REVELATION CH 20? Before an answer to that question can even be attempted, there is another question that demands our attention. Who are the Gog and Magog of EZEKIEL CHS 38 & 39? By extension, the next equally important question; what battle is referred to in these chapters? So much information for lovers of God’s word and students of the end-days is contained in these, and the preceding chapters, that a correct understanding of them is vital. There is much “gold” here. Let us dig some out together. INTRODUCTION Your writer began to seriously consider this question more than forty years ago. There was a popular magazine read by many with this and other related end-day issues. It was obvious that they had a tremendous significance and a correct understanding of these events and would be of considerable help in the unfolding of much of the other prophetic scriptures. If memory serves me correctly, the magazine was called “The Midnight Cry”. Its editor and main contributor was convinced that Gog, Magog and the allies was a national grouping. It was emphatically suggested that this grouping was Russia, U.S.S.R. and all that Soviet bloc. It was also emphatically stressed that the conflict of EZEKIEL CHS 38 & 39 would take place prior (considerably) to the rise of Antichrist and the Battle of Armageddon, detailed in REVELATION 16 V 12 – 21 & 19 V 11 – 21. As this was the prevalent teaching of the time, your writer logged it in his mind but with a few misgivings. A CONVICTION REMAINS However, a conviction always remained that there was more to be discovered in these so vital chapters. Let me ”fast forward” twenty years when, after a blessed series of seminars for African pastors in Kenya and Tanzania, the time had come for our return to the UK. “Egypt Air” had offered the best value flight from Heathrow to Kenya and return. The flight was under booked, so the possibility of many hours of Bible study embracing this very subject could now become a reality. My plan was simple. Spread out with no books, commentaries or any such thing. The tools of my trade being my beloved King James Bible (the dog-eared, sellotaped copy is now 45 years old and my constant companion) and my clows concordance. These treasures would be all that I would use or need, as our only interest would be the internal evidences of the Word of God. The blessed results of those precious hours and subsequent reflections are now offered for your consideration. It is not offered as a Divine revelation from God. Simply, we offer an interpretation of these two vital chapters and many other relevant scriptures. They are offered to you by an aged lover of the Word of God who is all too aware that “we see through a glass darkly”. THE GOG OF EZEKIEL IS THE ANTICHRIST
OF REVELATION So, no cards close to my chest, for here, right from our commencement, all are on the table. Hercule Poirot (Agatha Christie’s favourite sleuth) built everything up for a cliff-hanger of a “denouement” when all was breathtakingly revealed, but this is not for me! Remember, your writer did not begin with this interpretation, but after more than eight hours of blessed study, meditation and reflection, it seemed that the only possible conclusion that could be reached is the one we now offer to you. NOW to those Biblical evidences. LET US CONSIDER GOG HIMSELF EZEKIEL
38 v 1 – 3
And the word of the Lord came unto me,
saying, Son
of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of
Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal,
and prophesy against him, And
say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am
against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech
and Tubal: In these verses everything points to Gog being a person. As with all utterly dominant leaders, whether benign or despotic, they are the embodiment of the nation that spawns them. God is against HIM. GOG is described as a “chief prince”, all of which would indicate a person, an individual, not a collective of nations or a bloc. GOG IS THE THEME AND SUBJECT OF THE
OLD TIME PROPHETS
EZEKIEL
38 v 17 Thus saith the Lord God; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them? So GOG was the theme and subject of the old time prophets. Thus GOG is a person, and the subject of the prophecies of the Lord Jesus and those of the Apostles, even to John himself in the Book of the Revelation. There is only one personage who could possibly fit the description in EZEKIEL 38 v 17, and that is the Antichrist. An unbiased view of this scripture could only come to one conclusion, GOG is ANTICHRIST. A GREAT SHAKING IN THE LAND OF
ISRAEL
EZEKIEL
38 V 19 For
in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have
I spoken, Surely IN THAT DAY there shall be a
great shaking in the land of Israel; This is not the only verse that refers to this “GREAT SHAKING” and the consideration of some of the other verses sheds great light. Please also note that this “great shaking” takes place “in that day”. These verses are so illuminating with a brightness that, like the prophecy itself, is “shaking” in the extreme.
ISAIAH
2 v 19 & 20 And
they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and
into the caves of the earth, for fear of the
Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he
ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
In that day…. So this prophecy describing the period of EZEKIEL CHS 38 & 39 is “In that day” or as ISAIAH 2 v 12 puts it in “The Day of the Lord” which locates the time point with utter clarity. If that were not enough, the verse illuminates the time point with even greater clarity. “The loftiness of man shall be bowed down and the haughtiness of men shall be made low (ISAIAH 2 v 17) and they shall go into the holes of the rocks and caves of the earth for fear of the Lord…when He ariseth to SHAKE TERRIBLY THE EARTH”. Let us compare these features with what takes place under the sixth seal. Please read all of REVELATION 6 v 12 – 16, noticing the “SHAKING” and the identical posturing of the arrogant Kings and great men of John’s Patmos vision. The time of these events is made clear from the Olivet discourse of our Lord Jesus when He describes these events, MATTHEW 24 v 29 - Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken, noting that it takes place IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE TRIBULATION, further, that it describes identical events to both EZEKIEL and JOHN’S description and, finally, there is another reference to the “SHAKING”. ANOTHER REFERENCE TO THE SHAKING IN
THE LAND OF ISRAEL We read of this reference to the great shaking in HAGGAI 2 v 6 & 7 – For thus saith the Lord of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come:… So, yet another reference to the “GREAT SHAKING” and one further that pinpoints exactly the time point of when the events under our consideration takes place. It is when “the desire of all nations shall come”, which can only refer to the second coming of our beloved Lord and Saviour – Jesus Christ. Just the briefest of re-caps. So far we have seen that GOG is a person, not a nation, not a group of nations or a bloc. We have seen GOG is the personage who is the only theme of the prophetic burden. Finally, we noted that GOG manifests up to the time of Christ’s second coming. Perhaps we already should be uttering a loud triumphant Q.E.D, but there is still more, much more. THE WRATH OF GOD FALLS ON GOG The great tribulation is the “Wrath of Satan” unleashed upon God’s elect, both Jew and Christian. Never forget Satan is utterly, implacably Anti God and his human embodiment is, as his name demands, utterly Anti-Christ. In the old order, God’s people, the apple of His eye, were the Jews and in God’s new order, Christ Jesus is building His church. So, upon both Jew and Christian, all of the fury of all of the dark forces are unleashed. This, under the headship of GOG, or as he is also known, Antichrist. But his day, though unparalleled in diabolical rage, is mercifully brief. As further proof of our assertion that GOG is indeed Antichrist, let us consider more of our section heading where we present details of “THE WRATH OF GOD FALLS ON GOG”. Let us consider another scripture. EZEKIEL 38 v 22 – And I will plead against him (GOG) with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire and brimstone.” Surely there can only be one conclusion from a comparison of the events detailed in our verse with the “Vials of God’s Wrath” as seen by John on Patmos and that conclusion can only be that they describe the same events. REVELATION CH 16 gives a complete account of the outpouring of these “Vials of Wrath”. Please remind yourselves of them. Our verse (EZEKIEL 38 v 22) refers to pestilence and blood. Mention is made of an outpouring on GOG of an overflowing rain, great hailstones, fire and brimstone. As we compare all EZEKIEL’s features, they are all present in John’s Patmos account and although REVELATION 16 v 8 – 9 refer to men being scorched with fire and great heat, we have to look at Peter’s parallel description of end-time prophecy for a fuller account which includes the fire and brimstone aspect. 2
PETER 3 v 10 But
the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the
night; in which the heavens shall pass away with
a great noise, and the elements shall melt with
fervent heat, the earth also and the works that
are therein shall be burned up. Please forgive your aged preacher brother adding a comment to close this section. He recently ministered and his subject was “GLOBAL WARMING”. His text was 2 PETER 3 v 11 – Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness and pressed home the challenge, as only a Pentecostal holiness preacher can for the vital necessity of holiness and purity (the challenge to Sardis for the need which is a “MUST” of having white garments cleansed in the precious blood of Jesus was also woven in) of which Peter leaves his readers in no doubt. May I encourage any ministering brother who chances upon this challenge to take it up and “Preach it brother, preach it!”. GOG WILL FALL AT THE DAY OF THE LORD We begin with some triumphant scriptures:
EZEKIEL
39 v 1, 4 and 8
….Behold I am against thee, O GOG, the
chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:
Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of
Israel….
Behold,
it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord God;
this is the day whereof
I have spoken. This verse eight is one of the most revealing scripture’s in our search to ascertain with certainty that EZEKIEL CHAPTERS 38 and 39 refer to the climatic events at the time of the end and not to more obscuring happenings some time before the climax of the ages. Please note from this EZEKIEL 39 v 8: 1. IT IS COME. 2. IT IS DONE. 3. THIS IS THE DAY WHEREOF I HAVE SPOKEN. So, our minds are drawn to “a coming”, to a completion, both events in the period of the “Day of the Lord”. The phrase “IT IS DONE”, immediately projects our thoughts to an identical phrase uttered by the angel at the climax of the outpouring of the seventh vial of the Wrath of God. It is found in REVELATION 16 v 17 – And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, IT IS DONE. This is also another confirmation (with more to follow) that the EZEKIEL 39 conflict is the Battle of Armageddon. Please read the preceding verses and read all of REVELATION 16 v 12 – 16. We just highlight v12. The area which is “EUPHRATES” in Babylon, v 13 – 14. The major move of the Satanic Trinity to gather the nations to the battle of the great day of God Almighty; v15 The Coming of the Lord as a thief is still future. V16 The exact location is ARMAGEDDON. So, briefly, we emphasise that EZEKIEL 39 v 8 is the day of which the Lord has spoken – The day of the Lord which could make the Ezekiel battle none other than the Battle of Armageddon, when GOG (Antichrist) falls upon the mountains of Israel. At this point JOEL 2 v 10, 11 and 31, ZEPHANIAH 1 v 14 – 16 could be read with profit as some confirmation scriptures among many. So, GOG has fallen and we must hasten on to consider another proof of when this conflict takes place. It certainly could not be some obscure, almost irrelevant battle taking place some time before “The time of the end” for EZEKIEL tells us it is: - AT THE TIME OF THE BANQUET FOR BEAST
AND FEATHERED FOWL EZEKIEL
39 v 17 - 19 And,
thou son of man, thus saith the Lord God; Speak
unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of
the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather
yourselves on every side to MY SACRIFICE that I
do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice
upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat
flesh, and drink blood. Ye
shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink
blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of
lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them
fatlings of Bashan. And
ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink
blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which
I have sacrificed for you. This is when GOG is destroyed and,
as we shall see, has identical features to the
Battle of Armageddon as seen by John on Patmos
and other prophetic writers. Let us first
consider John’s vision, which is the
completion of what we have observed in REVELATION
16 v 12 -17. If we had no other proof, the
comparison of these two scriptures from EZEKIEL
and REVELATION would be proof positive that GOG
is ANTICHRIST. Now to the scripture itself. REVELATION
19 v 11 – 21 – we must restrict
ourselves to presenting just verses 17 and 18: And
I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried
with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that
fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather
yourselves together unto the supper of the great
God; That
ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of
captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the
flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them,
and the flesh of all men, both free and bond,
both small and great. Ezekiel describes it as “MY
SACRIFICE”, ZEPHANIAH also refers to the Day of the
Lord which is at hand and also to the Lord’s
“SACRIFICE” and the bidding of his guests. ZEPHANIAH 1 v 7 – Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God: for
the day of the Lord is at hand:
for the Lord hath prepared A SACRIFICE,
he hath bid his guests. ISAIAH also refers to this sacrifice
in ISAIAH 34 v 6 – …for the Lord hath A SACRIFICE. Please read all
of this chapter, noting so many relevant
features of our study. Time and space forbid the
quoting of all the chapter, but just one verse
that makes the hairs on the back of my neck
tingle: ISAIAH
34 v 16 Seek
ye out of the book of the Lord, and read: no one
of these shall fail, none shall want her mate:
for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit
it hath gathered them. Our last scripture as we consider
this “SACRIFICE”, must come from
JEREMIAH’s lips and pen, where, in this one
verse, he refers to the day of the Lord, a day
of vengeance and that this sacrifice takes place
by the river EUPHRATES:
JEREMIAH 46 v 10 For
this is the day of the Lord God of hosts, a day
of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his
adversaries: and the sword shall devour, and it
shall be satiate and made drunk with their
blood: for the Lord God of hosts hath a
sacrifice in the north country by the river
Euphrates. GOG
IS DESTROYED, ISRAEL IS CONVERTED “Oh for a trumpet voice, on all
the earth to call” is a line from a verse of
one of my favourite hymns and it perfectly
describes how your writer feels at this moment,
for we come to the most glorious event in all
history of the people of God, which we know
today as Israel. We have detailed the defect and
destruction of GOG which surely has been
incontrovertibly proved to be the Antichrist. If
the scriptures are the basis of your doctrines,
no other conclusion could be reached. Held
doctrine, however it is cherished, must always
bow before the infallible Word of God, EVER
remember “Not one word will fail”. So, GOG
is defeated and destroyed and then follows this
glorious event.
EZEKIEL 39 v 21 – 22 And
I will set my glory among the heathen, and all
the heathen shall see my judgment that I have
executed, and my hand that I have laid upon
them. So
the house of Israel shall know that I am the
Lord their God from that day and forward. A refutation of that accursed
“doctrine of demons” known as “replacement
theology” in such a presentation as this,
cannot be embarked on. We must assume that all
our readers believe in and hope and long for the
restoration of God’s historic people, the Jew.
Not, of course, just a restoration to their God
given land of Israel, but their conversion and
acceptance of Jesus Christ as their Saviour,
Messiah and King. As we are considering the
final events of the age, of this world’s
history e.g. the tribulation, the rise, reign
and defect of Antichrist, which takes place at
Armageddon at the Coming of our beloved Lord
Jesus, then the conversion and restoration of
God’s historic people must be a vital part of
it as it is one of the primary, even major
purposes of these events. We now consider it and
may it bless your souls as the preparation of
this article has blessed the soul of the one
that has prepared it. The glorious events
detailed in EZEKIEL 39 v 21 – 22 had already
been introduced in EZEKIEL
38 v 23 where we note that the non-Jewish
world is blessed in all these events. So, the
nations have with awe and wonder witnessed the
most glorious, unparalleled events in world
history as Antichrist (GOG) and his beast
kingdom are destroyed. Perhaps, even more
awesome and wonderful, will be to observe the
restoration and conversion of God’s people,
for they have finally accepted that Jesus is
their Messiah. As a nation, all hope was gone
and the end of the nation hanging, as it were,
on a hairsbreadth, must surely come.
Annihilation looms. Then the Lord descends and
destroys Antichrist (GOG) with the brightness of
His coming. It is Epiphany. MORE
DETAILS OF ISRAEL’S CONVERSION
2 THESSALONIANS 2 v 8 And
then shall the Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord
shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and
shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
God’s people, the Jew, the apple
of His eye have known God’s judgments on their
sins. Their idolatries and blood guiltiness
reached to heaven, demanding only judgment. But
with the spirit of judgment and of burning
through captivities and the diaspora in which
the people of God were scattered throughout the
nations for nearly two thousand years, their sin
is finally purged. God’s people did bear their
shame according to EZEKIEL 39 v 23 – 24: And
the heathen shall know that the house of Israel
went into captivity for their iniquity: because
they trespassed against me, therefore hid I my
face from them, and gave them into the hand of
their enemies: so fell they all by the sword. According
to their uncleanness and according to their
transgressions have I done unto them, and hid my
face from them. But, wonder of wonders, miracle of
miracles, God’s people are gathered into their
land once more. EZEKIEL
39 v 26 – 28 After
that they have borne their shame, and all their
trespasses whereby they have trespassed against
me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and
none made them afraid. When
I have brought them again from the people, and
gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and
am sanctified in them in the sight of many
nations; Then
shall they know that I am the Lord their God,
which caused them to be led into captivity among
the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their
own land, and have left none of them any more
there. Finally, we note that the chapters
we have pondered end on a glorious triumphant
note. Jacob’s trouble is over and our beloved
Lord will never again hide His face from His
people:
EZEKIEL 39 v 29 Neither
will I hide my face any more from them: for I
have poured out my spirit upon the house of
Israel, saith the Lord God. So, let us rejoice in glorious
anticipation of the re-birth of the Nation of
Israel. They are no longer two nations (please
do read EZEKIEL
37). They are no longer just dry bones but,
by God’s spirit, have become a people re-born
(EZEKIEL 36 v 16 – 38 outlines all this and more, please do read in
awesome wonder). Our last quoted scripture is from
another end-time prophet.
ZECHARIAH 12 v 9 – 10 and 13 v 1 & 9 And
it shall come to pass in that day, that I will
seek to destroy all the nations that come
against Jerusalem. And
I will pour upon the house of David, and upon
the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of
grace and of supplications: and they shall look
upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall
mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son,
and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that
is in bitterness for his firstborn. In
that day there shall be a fountain opened to the
house of David and to the inhabitants of
Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. And
I will bring the third part through the fire,
and will refine them as silver is refined, and
will try them as gold is tried: they shall call
on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It
is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my
God. So, we draw our deliberations to a
close. We began with a question: - WHO
IS GOG? Without reference to dubious
suggestions from names e.g. Meshec, Tubal, etc.,
without resort to mans traditional
interpretations, but purely from the internal
evidences of the Word of God, we have come to an
indisputable conclusion: GOG
IS ANTICHRIST! and
with this we bid our readers a “fond adieu”.
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BE PREPARED, ANTICHRIST WILL REIGN THE GOG OF EZEKIEL IS THE ANTICHRIST OF REVELATION
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